Ursula Kamanga (Ph.D., University of Kansas) is an assistant professor in residence in the Honors College. She teaches first year Public Speaking courses (HON 1004-1007) and a HON 400-level seminar course on Health Communication. She is from South Africa, and she completed both her Bachelor of Science in Family Studies and Human Services and a Master of Science in Journalism and Mass Communication at Kansas State University. Her master’s thesis investigated how health apps influence college students’ health behavior. Upon completion of her graduate degree, she went to work for two years as a lecturer, teaching communication courses at the University of the Free State.

Kamanga’s research examines how digital technologies assist ethnic minorities to influence their health behavior related to chronic diseases. Her collaborative work features in peer-reviewed journals such as Digital Health and Convergence, respectively. In addition, she presented her research at several core conferences within the United States.

Kamanga’s teaching satisfaction comes from teaching communication courses. At the heart of her teaching, she believes it is important for students to critically think and learn independently to allow them to use those skills beyond the university.